The Scientology Volunteer Ministers who served at Ground Zero in the months following 9/11 set a standard for disaster response and inspired a movement that carried forward for the past decade, as evidenced by the work of Volunteer Ministers at disaster sites on six continents between 2007 and 2009.

2007

In April, Australian Volunteer Ministers provided relief in the Solomon Islands after an 8.1 earthquake and tsunami washed away entire villages.

Latin America and U.S. Volunteer Ministers flew to Peru in August when a magnitude 8 earthquake destroyed most of the coastal city of Pisco. Working with the National Civil Defense System, United Nations agencies, the Red Cross and the military they helped in the search and rescue, manned shelters and used Scientology assists to help survivors overcome the shock and trauma of the incident.

They also manned relief centers and provided support to firefighters battling blazes in Southern California.

2008

After record flooding in August in the state of Bihar, India, Volunteer Ministers from Kolkata enlisted the help of doctors, organized a mobile medical center and brought them to the disaster zone. They also brought food and supplies by boat directly to stranded villagers throughout the region.

Scientology Volunteer Ministers from Costa Rica helped in the wake of the 6.2 quake northwest of San Jose—the worst in that country in 150 years.

South African Volunteer Ministers helped provide food, water and assists to firefighters battling the blaze on Table Mountain in Cape Town, as did Australian VMs during the Victoria brush fires, and their counterparts in Southern California during their fire season this year.

There were also Volunteer Ministers on hand to help those affected by tornadoes in Kansas and Iowa, flooding and volcanic eruption in Colombia, and mudslides in Seattle, Washington.

2009

The L’Aquila 6.3 magnitude earthquake of April 6 left 65,000 homeless. The deadliest Italian quake in 30 years, it knocked out the infrastructure across 26 towns. Scientology Volunteer Ministers whose team leaders are fully certified Civil Protection Specialists operated under National Command and Control headquarters in Rome and supplied administrative and tactical support to relief camps and Disaster Command Central. They also built temporary housing, administrated shelters, ran the ambulance service, directed medical services, and distributed emergency rations.